Love Is A Battlefield
by Chibi Rose Angel
Summary: They can break codes, pilot giant machines capable of mass destruction, destroy battle stations and save the world. But keeping a relationship going? The Gundam pilots aren’t quite so good at that. 1xR, 2xH, 4xD, 5xS and 6x9
1. Frustration

_**Author's Notes**_: I know most of you guys are probably wondering what on earth happened to my comedy story "Just One Of Those Days" right? Well you see… I've got a particularly nasty case of writer's block. Every time I try to sit down and work on that story, nothing ever comes out… So until I can get the creativity juices working again for that story, I've decided to just focus on whatever other stories I'm working on. What I'm aiming for with this story is a light hearted romantic romp that brings a smile to your face. And no I am not going to make this a cheesy and painfully cliché romantic comedy. I'm going to try my absolute best to keep everyone in character because I hate out of characterness, BUT keep in mind this is supposed to be a _**romantic comedy**_! Character thoughts will be in italics. Hope you guys enjoy the story and by all means constructive criticisms are welcomed! A big thank you goes out to PimpMastaPopo for being my beta reader. Go check out her fics!

_**Inspiration**_: Every Valentine's Day, I always want to write a ridiculously funny and cute story about romance. Not the sappy, sweet, gooey makes your teeth fall out kind of romance either. Since most of my stories are either angst, tragedy, drama, general or friendship, I figured it wouldn't hurt to try my hand at a romantic comedy.

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything associated with Gundam Wing.

Anger was not an emotion that she normally tried to shy away from. She was no stranger to feelings of annoyance, frustration or irritation. But what had transpired just moments ago between her and a certain individual was more than enough to bring out her ugly side.

Her delicate features were marred by the faint scowl on her face as she angrily walked down the halls of Preventer Headquarters. Normally she wasn't prone to such behavior, but drastic times called for drastic measures.

And for those foolish enough to cross her? This time, she wasn't above sparing the rod for anyone!

"Honestly of all the stupid and moronic things! If I didn't know him as well as I do, I'd swear he was brain dead!" She muttered crossly.

Her pace quickened a bit as her thoughts wandered back to the events of this morning.

_Flashback _

She had just finished negotiating some important contracts with the representatives from L3 X-18999. The contracts were simply guidelines on how to improve relations between themselves and the United Earth Sphere Alliance. Some people weren't so quick to forgive the colony for their earlier transgressions.

Relena, on the other hand, was more than happy to forgive them. Part of it was because she really wanted everyone to let go of their hard feelings.

The other part? She had her heart set on seeing Heero today. He had promised to spend the evening with her. Though it took quite a bit of convincing on her part to get him to actually take time off from work.

She was so excited about tonight that she hadn't even bothered to bring a change of clothes. She was simply going to go straight to Headquarters, but unfortunately destiny had other things in mind.

As she was preparing to leave her office, the vid-phone rang. She was tempted to just let it go, but she decided against it. She was sure that it was nothing important

Pressing the 'on' button, she waited a few moments while the screen crackled and finally activated. Her good mood increased tenfold when she saw that it was none other than Heero calling her.

Smiling ever so slightly, she greeted him politely. "Hello Heero."

He nodded briefly.

A moment of silence passed between them but neither of them minded. Among their friends, it was something of an ongoing joke with how long the two of them could stay quiet around one another.

When Heero didn't make a move to speak, however, her smile faded just a bit. She was used to him not being very vocal, but this was definitely new.

First of all, he never called her at the office. The only time he ever called her was to check on her before she went to sleep. And even then, the conversations were always short and to the point.

"Is there something you needed Heero?" She asked hesitantly.

When he still wouldn't say anything, she started to get a familiar sinking sensation. The only other time, Heero called her was when he couldn't see her…

_He wouldn't! I've waited nearly four months just to see him and that's NOT including the time I had to wait when he left…_

Relena began to wring her hands together nervously. She desperately hoped her feelings about this call were wrong.

"Relena…"

His entire body language was stiff. For once, she couldn't even read his eyes. His arms were crossed over his chest and if she didn't know any better, she could have sworn he was upset.

"Something's come up."

As she resisted the urge to sigh, she couldn't help the overwhelming swell of disapointment that rose up in her. It really wasn't something to get upset over, but a small part of her knew she had every right to be perturbed.

Her so called beau was always working, not to mention they never seemed to have time for one another and to top it all off, the entire world wanted to know all about her relationship with him.

Oh yes, Relena had every reason to be annoyed, but she didn't let it show. Instead, she smiled sweetly at Heero as she nodded. "It's all right. I understand."

Heero merely nodded. He stared at her for a few moments before his eyes softened. Slowly, he uncrossed his arms as he murmured, "I promsie I'll make this up to you."

And before she could even respond or blink, the vid-phone disconnected. Once the conversation was over, she took several deep breaths. Unfortunately, that did nothing to soothe her foul temperament.

It wasn't until she yelled out in frustration that she felt a little better. But perhaps that hadn't been the best idea because then all of her bodyguards and staff had come pounding on her door.

"Miss Relena, Miss Relena! Are you all right?!"

Sighing heavily, she went to her office door and opened it, smiling as she was greeted by several concerned faces.

"I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about." She smiled genially.

Closing the door behind herself, she walked out of the office, completely ignoring her briefcase, her secretary and everyone else.

If it was the last thing she did, she would make sure that Heero would not get away with this. After all, it wasn't every day that your boyfriend decided to brush you off on Valentine's Day.


	2. Miscommunication

_**Author's Notes**_: I forgot to mention how old everyone is and what will be the featured pairings in this story. First of all, the year is AC 204. So that means everyone should be in either their early twenties or late twenties. Secondly, these are the official pairings: Heero/Relena, Duo/Hilde, Quatre/Dorothy, Wufei/Sally and Zechs/Noin. I haven't forgotten about Lady Une or Trowa either. I have something special in mind for them! Now as always, this story is being beta read by PimpMastaPopo. A big thank you for being my proverbial guinea pig! Constructive criticisms are welcomed. There are a few instances where you might think the characters are being a bit OOC in this chapter but it was necessary for future events. Happy reading and enjoy!

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything associated with Gundam Wing.

To say Heero was not having a very good day was a huge understatement.

The moment he set foot in Headquarters, he had been accosted by several trainees, all of whom were much too eager and chipper for his liking. He knew he was responsible for training new recruits**,** but it was too early to be dealing with their endless questions.

When he finally managed to sneak away from them, it was lunch time. Sadly**,** he couldn't even enjoy his lunch in peace**,** because Duo had decided to join him…

Needless to say his lunch break had been less than enjoyable. Between Duo's incessant chatter and the noisy cafeteria, he had quickly lost his appetite. Nevertheless, he was able to tolerate Duo's company better than that of the rookies.

At least Duo actually _knew_ and _understood _to give him space. The rookies though? They had hung on his every word and followed him around all day long like puppies. Simply put, they were nothing more than fanatics. There was no way they could possibly understand the full magnitude of what it meant to be a Preventer.

As if to make matters worse, he had somehow forgotten to finish his report on his last mission. He _never_ forgot to do anything. It just wasn't in his nature to do so. But there was always a first time for everything.

The proverbial icing on the cake had been when Lady Une had informed him that he would be required to attend a mandatory training session.

True, he was a man of few words and could tolerate just about anything (or so it seemed) but this was too much. If he attended that meant he wouldn't be able to spend any time with Relena. Not only that, but he was very positive that there would be dire consequences if he willingly brushed off an order from his boss. But if he didn't attend the meeting, he'd be free to enjoy a romantic evening with his girlfriend.

He had agonized over his decision for the rest of the day.

When he had finally made up his mind, it took him about an hour to call Relena and tell her that he wouldn't be able to see her tonight. Never mind the fact that he had really been looking forward to a nice and quiet evening with her. He had planned everything so carefully.

First, he would have taken her to the new Italian restaurant downtown. She'd been going on for weeks about wanting to go there. Then, they would get a table on the upper level that showed off the beauty of the city skyline. As the stars and moon shone clearly in the skies, they would enjoy a wonderfully authentic meal, complete with vintage red wine.

Oh yes, he had thoroughly researched said restaurant. He was pleasantly surprised to find that the restaurant was actually true to its roots and not a cheap imitation. There was even a string quartet to entertain their patrons.

After the meal, he would have asked her to dance then from there he would have presented her with a little black box from Tiffany's. He was sure she would have loved the contents within the container.

Unfortunately for him, his plans for a romantic evening had been completely ruined. All smashed and broken to pieces thanks to his boss. He was sure that preserving the peace he and the others fought so hard for was important but not at the expense of having to break such an important promise to Relena.

Quickly coming back to the present, he glared menacingly at his foe on his desk. That stupid little piece of paper was practically the equivalent of a death sentence for him.

Lady Une herself had come to his office and delivered the paper, stating that he was needed at the office tonight. She hadn't bothered telling him anything else though except that he was responsible for what was written on the document.

Sighing irritably, he was about to go back to work on his reports when he heard several irritated voices quickly followed by footsteps.

"Please ma'am! Preventer Yuy is busy. He's given strict orders not to be disturbed for the remainder of the day!"

"I am well aware of his work habits but I am not leaving this building until I speak with him."

"But ma'am, you don't understand! His orders were explicit. He said…"

"I don't CARE what his orders were! I'm going to his office and you can't stop me!"

Heero flinched slightly when he realized that one of those voices belonged to Relena.

_Looks like Armageddon has come earlier than I expected. _

Anymore thoughts he might have had at the moment, disappeared quite rapidly when his office door was thrown open.

Cobalt blue eyes met midnight blue eyes.

For a moment, the two just stared at one another, completely ignoring the other people standing in the doorway. Then all hell proceeded to break loose as Relena slammed the door and proceeded to chew out one speechless and utterly defenseless Heero Yuy.

Eyes flashing dangerously, her breaths short and jerky, she proceeded to close the distance between them as she launched into a rant. "You selfish, inconsiderate and ungrateful jerk! How dare you cancel our date! I was looking forward to finally spending some time with you. And instead you put your job before me! You keep this up Yuy and you'll quickly find yourself out of a girlfriend! Honestly why I chose you of all people is beyond me!"

Taking a deep breath, she was set to start yelling at him again but Heero effectively cut her off by getting out of his seat and pulling her close. He wasted no time leaning down and capturing her lips in a passionate kiss.

Relena hadn't been expecting that. She had merely wanted to get her point across. For a moment though, she was temporarily startled but she recovered quite nicely as she pressed closer to him, nibbling on his bottom lip.

Though the kiss was mind blowing, a large part of her was still angry at him. When she tried to pull away from him to show that he wouldn't be getting off so easily, he grabbed both of her arms to prevent her escape.

He pulled back for a moment and whispered gently in her ear, "I'm sorry."

And as quickly as he apologized, his lips were right back on hers.

_Don't think a few kisses are going to save you, Yuy. You're still not getting away with this!_

She closed her eyes and gave in to him but not before murmuring between kisses, "This is far from over Yuy."


	3. Dog House Blues

_**Author's Notes**_: All right, so here's the deal. I'm actually enjoying this story. Unlike my other stories, I'm writing this one with no outline or guidelines whatsoever. But I have a teeny tiny problem. See, no one has been reviewing the story and I have no idea why that is. Come on guys! Tell me your thoughts please? As always, italics will denote character thoughts and constructive criticisms are welcomed. By the way, some of you might think Heero is being OOC but he's 24 years old! I think he would have come a long way from the stoic and unemotional teenager that he was in the show. Besides, people change as they get older and I'm sure all of the pilots and even the girls would have changed a bit.

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything else associated with Gundam Wing.

He was in trouble. BIG trouble! Maybe not nearly as much as Heero, but his girlfriend would definitely skin him alive tonight thanks to his poor behavior as of late.

Oh, it wasn't as if he cheated on her or anything of that nature. No, it was far worse than that. Because Duo Maxwell was a notorious flirt. Honestly he didn't mean to attract so much attention (he sure didn't mind it though) but those girls didn't mean a thing to him.

Flirting was just a part of him. Asking him not to flirt was like asking a fish not to swim. It just wasn't in his nature. Perhaps the worst part, however, was the fact that most of the time he wasn't even aware that he was doing it.

Oh yes, he was a dead man walking.

_Then again at least I'm not Quatre. _

He chuckled a bit; thanking his lucky stars that at least his girlfriend would come around eventually. If Quatre were in this situation, it would take a miracle for him to be forgiven.

_Serves him right for going after Catalonia!_

However, he quickly sobered up when his thoughts returned to Hilde. Sliding down in his office chair, he covered his face with his hands while contemplating his choices out loud.

"I could always try to get Quatre to do some damage control… Oh wait I did that last month! Maybe if I asked Trowa for some advice? No, that wouldn't work either! Last time I listened to him, she was practically attached to me. There's no way Wufei'll know what to do. The idiot still won't admit he likes Sally**. **So he's out too. That only leaves Heero…"

Duo sighed dramatically as he got up. Running a hand through his bangs, he couldn't help himself as he muttered, "Of all people… I can't believe I'm asking Heero!"

He left his office, shutting his door firmly as he left. As he walked down the hall, he was desperately hoping that Heero would be able to help him. If all else failed, he could always spend the night at one of the others' apartments.

Anything would be better than having to deal with whatever punishment Hilde had in mind.

Not even bothering to knock, he opened Heero's door. "Hey Heero, buddy I need…" The words died on his lips.

He couldn't tear his eyes away from the scene before him.

Heero's jacket was off, his tie was loose and his shirt was open while Relena's jacket was lying carelessly on the floor. Her hands were running though Heero's messy hair as she kissed him all over his face. Heero, on the other hand, had one arm firmly clasped around Relena's waist while the other one was in the process of lifting her up off of his desk.

Snapping back to reality, Duo slammed the door and leaned against it. Closing his eyes for a moment, he tried to shake what he just saw but he couldn't. "Great. Now every time I come to Heero's office, I'm going to have that image stuck in my head."

Collecting himself as best he could, he turned around and knocked on the door loudly. Though he was quite sure, the two occupants inside the room had very well heard the door closing.

He couldn't even find it in himself to laugh when he heard Relena gasp while Heero swore. Luckily for him, he didn't have to wait very long.

The door opened to reveal a very annoyed Heero Yuy. His shirt was buttoned up and his tie was straight but he hadn't bothered to put his jacket back on. There was no mistaking the lipstick smear on his left ear or the slightly visible passion mark on his neck, though.

Duo would have commented on both but a dark look from Heero and Relena silenced him. Slowly walking into the office, he grabbed one of the unoccupied chairs and turned it so he could sit down backwards.

_I am not going anywhere NEAR his desk from now on!_

Relena was busily trying to look presentable enough but the damage was already done. Her hair was slightly tousled and her makeup was beyond repair. There was also the fact that her lips were just a bit swollen.

Simply put, there was no way in hell she would be able to explain her current appearance to her secretary or anyone else who might see her. She walked over to Heero and gave him a peck on the cheek. She whispered something to him which caused him to smile slightly. She nodded to Duo and then she was off before he could even properly say hello or goodbye. He didn't take it personally though. He knew she was probably embarrassed beyond belief.

After all, it's not like your boyfriend's best friend walked in on the two of you making out everyday.

Clearing his throat slightly, he wasted no time in telling Heero his problem. "Okay, I know you're probably really angry at me but you'll have to take a ticket and get in line if you plan on killing me."

Heero only raised an eyebrow.

Taking that as a good omen, he relaxed a little. "See, the other night when I took Hilde out for Valentine's Day, I kinda spent the whole night flirting with our waitress. But in my defense, I didn't think I was flirting!"

Heero frowned. "Idiot, what else did you do?"

Duo had the decency to look indignant. "What'd ya mean what else did I do?! Hilde said I was flirting with the waitress instead of paying attention to her."

"There's no way she would be mad just because you were casually flirting with another woman." He retorted while never once taking his eyes off of him.

To anyone else, they would have missed it, but the sarcasm in Heero's words hadn't gone unnoticed by Duo. He narrowed his eyes while crossing his arms over his chest.

"Okay fine. Maybe it wasn't just the flirting. She was really unhappy with her gift too."

Heero didn't say a word. He was just waiting for the fool to admit what he brought for her.

Looking down he muttered sheepishly, "I thought she wanted something different so I brought her this really girly dress."

For a moment, everything was deadly quiet until Heero broke the silence with his poorly concealed laughter. Duo, however, could only glare at his so-called best friend. Right now, he was hoping the earth would open up and swallow him whole.

"Not only did you ignore her for a good portion of the night in favor of your waitress, but you also brought her a dress?"

He couldn't help cringing as he remembered Hilde's expression upon seeing the dress. "The most frillest, cutest, pinkest, gag inducing complete with ruffles and one big bow on the back dress… I swear the damn thing cost more than one of Quatre's business suits!"

Duo still hadn't stopped glaring at Heero, who was still quite amused by his friend's predicament.

"You really are an idiot. Honestly, did you buy the dress with Relena in mind?"

Letting out a breath of air, Duo rolled his eyes as he said, "Need you remind me? And no I didn't buy it with YOUR girlfriend in mind. She told me to surprise her so I thought I'd get her something special you know? But I couldn't find that certain something. She's not really big on jewelry and she's never been the type to go nuts over fashion crazes."

Heero let the question go unanswered. "Apologize to her and make it up to her then. Or you could always return the dress and buy something that she'll actually like."

"But that's the thing. I'd only be able to do an exchange and there wasn't anything else in the store I saw that she might like. I just need a foolproof plan that will keep me out of the doghouse indefinitely. I can't ask Quatre because he got me out of trouble last month. Trowa's out of the picture because well you already know the answer. And there's no way in hell I'm asking Wufei to help me. So got any ideas partner?"

Heero had to repress the urge to sigh. Given the choice, he would have gladly chosen Relena over Duo but he couldn't just leave him in the cold either.

There were actually a few times where Duo had managed to rescue him from the same fate. So though he would rather sit back and watch Duo suffer, he had to be good for once and play the role of a supporting and caring best friend.

_You owe me big time for this one Maxwell._ He thought darkly.

As the two of them began working on said plan, somebody else was about to find himself on the wrong end of his girlfriend's wrath as well.


	4. Annoyed Beyond Belief

_**Author's Notes**_: So sorry it took me so long to get the next chapter written! I've been trying to figure out who would be my next victim… I mean I was trying to make sure the story flowed well instead of being choppy and all over the place. Don't worry folks! Duo is going to face the music but not just yet! I want him to sweat it out a bit first! By the way, in case anyone is curious the setting for this story is Earth. As always a big, grateful, heartfelt thank you goes to PimpMastaPopo for being my beta reader! She's awesome so do yourselves a favor and check out her fics. Italics will denote character thoughts and constructive criticisms are welcomed. Without further ado, happy reading!

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything else associated with Gundam Wing.

Given his current mindset, he really shouldn't be driving. As a matter of fact, he shouldn't have left her in the first place but she hadn't given him much of a choice. He should have stood his ground and reasoned with her but she wasn't exactly known for being reasonable.

Currently his mind was a swirling chaotic vortex all thanks to his girlfriend. He could barely focus on the road because his thoughts kept going back to their argument from earlier. Not that he wanted to keep thinking about it but he just couldn't believe how thoughtless she was being.

He wasn't a violent man nor would he ever resort to belittling other people but for once in his life, he had been extremely tempted to throw pacifism to the wind! If only it would have gotten her to see his point of view then maybe it would have been worth it but before he had the chance to say anything he would regret later, he had angrily stormed out of her home, never once looking back. As he was leaving; a small part of him kept hoping that she would call out for him and maybe even apologize but that was asking for too much.

He was by no means an idiot or a weakling, but apparently his girlfriend thought otherwise. So he had made the tiny, small and relatively harmless mistake of making plans with Trowa for the evening.

Never mind the fact that he spent a good majority of his time cooped up in board meetings, visiting various sites for his business on Earth and the Colonies and being a part time Preventer. As was it, he barely had any time for her!

Was it so much to ask for him to actually spend some time with someone other than his Board of Directors, employees, personal aides or her?

No matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise, this was nothing more than a power-play. A blatant excuse for a battle of the sexes**. **But since he was refusing to partake in said battle, that made him the weaker of the two.

If he had a dime for every time, people assumed he was the woman in the relationship or worse, he wouldn't have even bothered inheriting his father's company!

He was actually still reeling from the rumors and gossip surrounding his relationship with Trowa. Ever since word came out that he was dating Dorothy, the tabloids began printing all sorts of stories. While some of the reports and articles served to greatly amuse him and the others, there were quite a few that severely pushed his patience.

Dorothy wasn't helping matters either. Instead of her being appalled and maybe even a bit supportive, she was actually enjoying every last bit of this whole ordeal. She never failed to tease him or question him about his "escapades" with Trowa, which was exactly why he was currently refusing to answer to his cell phone.

He knew it was no one else but her, but he wasn't in the mood to hear from her. She'd done enough damage for one day. A man could only take so many teasing comments.

So he was very close with another man. That did NOT mean he swung the other way. Nor did it mean he was only dating Dorothy to save face. He wasn't nearly as upset about that as he was with the way the media was portraying her. All of the reports claimed that she was only with him because of his family's business and that she didn't really love him.

The reporters, his family members and everyone else were absolutely convinced that she was just using him for her own secret agenda. None of them actually saw her as a real, living and breathing human being with feelings and thoughts. They just thought of her as this terrible, wicked and vindictive creature out for his blood and most importantly, his money.

And when he actually tried to voice his concerns to Dorothy about this, she had merely brushed him off by telling him he was worrying for nothing. Maybe he was blowing things completely out of proportion… but wasn't it his job to have her best interests at heart?

Didn't it count for something that he had actually gone out of his way to find her again after the Eve Wars?

He hadn't had any plans of forming a romantic relationship with her either. He had merely wanted to check up on her and make sure she was all right.

But he had nothing to gain or lose from befriending her. During the wars, he had known she was just simply lonely and perhaps even a bit depressed. Back then, however, he had made no move to approach her. It hadn't been because he was intimidated by her or because he didn't know what to say.

Actually he wanted to help her because he saw so much of himself in her. Her bitterness and anger at the world, the icy shields she built around her heart and even the way she tried to pretend she wasn't kind or caring. He had been down that road before and knew firsthand that nothing good could come of it.

Perhaps it had been fate or even destiny that their paths ended up crossing again during the battle abroad Libra, but it wasn't until after everything was said and done that he started to wonder about her.

There were many nights where his thoughts would inevitably drift towards her. He would catch himself thinking about whether or not she had taken Trowa's words to heart or if she had stubbornly remained the same just to spite them both.

But now that they were finally together, it just wasn't enough for him. To him, it felt as though he wasn't good enough for Dorothy. Her constant jabs about his masculinity (or lack thereof) was grating on his nerves. To make matters worse, she tended to shy away from his affections. The icing on the cake finally came the other night when he had accidentally overheard her telling Relena that she wished he wasn't so feminine and instead more manly like Heero, Trowa or Wufei.

Okay, so he wasn't built like a Spartan**. **And maybe he actually had manners, treated women like they were equals and not trophies, tended to be polite with just about everyone he came in contact with, didn't drink, smoke or do anything that one would consider "cool", had a nasty habit of apologizing for nearly everything even when it wasn't his fault, was naïve and loyal to a certain fault and actually believed that the world wasn't such a bad place.

Was it such a crime for a man to have all of those personality traits? Well, according to her, it was that and much more.

Gripping the steering wheel a little more tightly than needed, he forced all of those thoughts out of his mind. For once he was going to have a stress and worry free evening even if it killed him!

* * *

Glaring at her cell phone, Dorothy could only come to two conclusions. 1) Her boyfriend was more sensitive than she originally thought. 2) Perhaps she might have gone a bit too far with her teasing.

But being the obstinate woman that she was, she was more inclined to believe it was the first choice. It wasn't her fault the man didn't know how to take a joke.

"He could have at least answered." She mumbled.

Placing the phone back on the table, she began to dial a familiar number. The vid-phone rung twice before she quickly hung up.

"What am I doing? I didn't really do anything wrong! He just can't take a joke! Besides, he knew what he was getting into when we started dating…" Her voice trailed off, losing its haughty tone.

_Damn it! He's starting to rub off on me…_

Glancing once more at the vid-phone, she willingly pushed aside her pride and dialed the number again. Right now she felt like an idiot but she'd have time to worry about that later.

She drummed her fingers lightly on her desk as she waited patiently while the screen crackled and then finally came to life; however, she wasted no time in starting a conversation.

"How are things between you and Mr. Perfect Soldier?" She asked cheekily.

_Who needs tact when you can forget about your problems by irritating your friend about her love life? _

Relena rolled her eyes before responding. "And to what do I owe the pleasure Dorothy?"

Dorothy smiled. "Why Miss Relena, if I didn't know any better I'd say you were being sarcastic."

"You think so?" She questioned, the sarcasm still heavy in her voice.

"Of course, I know you better than anyone else! So tell me, what has the idiot done this time? Didn't buy you any roses or lilies? Forgot to call you on your lunch break? Hasn't been paying you any attention? Or could it be that your needs just aren't being met adequately?"

Relena didn't know whether she should be mortified or amused by Dorothy's antics. It was clear something was bothering her, otherwise she wouldn't have wasted her time asking about Heero, nor would she have bothered to call.

Quickly putting the pieces together, Relena couldn't help the slight smile that came to her face. "Not that it's any of your business but Heero and I are just fine. He canceled our date for the evening but somehow I get the feeling you're in the same boat."

Dorothy raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Was this date supposed to be more important than the others you've been on?"

It didn't go unnoticed by Relena that Dorothy failed to respond to the last part of her statement. Inwardly, she was laughing uncontrollably. Normally she was the one calling Dorothy for advice and not the other way around.

_I knew it! So she is calling me to talk about Quatre!_

"Perhaps it was but you never answered my original question. And before you even say it, you never call to chat with me."

She sighed before muttering, "Yuy's a bad influence on you after all."

Relena really did laugh then. "No he isn't. I just know how to read between the lines."

Folding her arms across her chest, she couldn't help the slight scowl that came to her face. "If you're so inclined to know, Quatre's mad at me."

That tidbit of information didn't faze Relena in the least bit. She knew Dorothy was the type of person who could get under your skin effortlessly. Try as you might, there was no getting rid of her either. She would only leave you alone once she lost interest in you. That or when she saw that you were onto her game. She just loved pushing people's buttons and testing their patience.

All of their friends kept telling her that one of these days, that particular quirk might end up being the death of her. In true Dorothy fashion, however, she just merely brushed their concerns aside and continued to do as she pleased.

Sighing softly, Relena couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for her. For all the pretending Dorothy did, she was well aware that she didn't mean to be so spiteful and irritating. She just didn't know how to curb that side of her personality.

Instead of voicing her sympathies, she asked, "What did you do this time?"

The scowl on her face darkened considerably. "You're aware of the reports about Quatre's relationship with me and Trowa aren't you?"

Her eyes widened in shock. "You didn't!"

Resisting the urge to hit something, she muttered, "I was only teasing. I had no idea he was going to get so upset."

"Dorothy you know that sort of thing bothers him. Don't you think he has enough to worry about without you adding onto to his problems?"

She blinked as confusion spread across her face.

Sighing yet again, she began to explain everything to her. "Ever since he's taken control of his father's company, his Board of Directors have continually doubted him. They don't think he's capable of handling things as well as his father did. There's also the fact that his family has been pressuring him to take a wife for quite some time. He's also been stretching himself thin for the past few years because of his responsibilities. But he always seems happiest when he's with you though."

She could only stare at Relena until finally her eyes narrowed menacingly as her voice became like ice. "Are you implying I don't know about my boyfriend's problems Relena?"

Unperturbed by this sudden change in behavior, Relena continued forward. "No that's not what I meant. I was simply reminding you that maybe it wouldn't hurt for you to be a bit more sensitive towards his feelings."

That comment actually managed to make her flinch. She knew she wasn't the greatest person to be around but it bothered her to know that Relena was right on so many levels. It even unnerved her slightly to find out that Relena seemed to know more about Quatre than she did. Of course she would never admit any of that out loud though.

Smirking slightly, she couldn't help herself as the words came out. "You'll have to forgive me then. Not everyone was meant to be such an optimist Relena."

Narrowing her eyes, Relena knew she was playing dirty now. "Optimist or not, you had better be careful Dorothy. He's a good man and he deserves to be treated as one. If you end up losing him…"

The smirk had become a full blown catty smile. "If I didn't know any better, I would think you love Quatre more than you love Heero. But don't worry Relena. I can assure you that I'm taking _**very **_good care of Quatre. Now if you'll excuse me I bid you goodnight."

She hung up quickly before Relena even had a chance to respond. It was one thing to lecture her on her less than favorable quirks. It was a completely different story altogether to call into question her feelings for Quatre.

Regardless of what anyone thought or felt about her, she loved him more than anything else. Not even her love for battles and war compared to what she felt for him.

_Well, maybe I don't love him that much but it's damn close!_

She'd see to it first thing in the morning that everything would be set right. But for now she just wanted a nice and generous helping of mint chocolate chip ice cream. Nothing made a woman feel better than a bowl of her favorite ice cream.


	5. Caught Red Handed

_**Author's Notes**_: All right so here's a proposal for you my dear readers. A few of you (including my beta) have suggested that perhaps I should change the title of my story. I'm thinking about changing the title of my story to "All's Fair In Love & War" so here's what I want you guys to do. When you review this chapter, tell me your thoughts about the tentative title change. If you don't like it that's fine but remember I want to hear your thoughts! And keep those reviews coming as well! At any rate, this chapter is going to have a lot going on so don't get lost okay? As always this story is being beta read by PimpMastaPopo! Seriously, do yourself a big favor and check out her fics. I promise you won't regret it! At this time, I'd like to say that Honourable Fool's story, "Surprises and Tribulations" has a chapter that might read similar right up until the middle of this chapter. However, in no way, shape or form have I willingly copied any material from her story. If you read this chapter and feel as though I've copied from your story, I would like to note that anything that happens in this chapter was purely coincidental and has nothing to do with your story. For those of you who are curious, Duo finally faces the music in this chapter and Trowa finally shows up! Mwuahahaha! Italics will denote character thoughts and constructive criticisms are welcomed!

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything else associated with Gundam Wing.

For once, he was actually glad that he had gone to Heero for help. The man really was a genius! Of course, he had been skeptical at first**. **But all of his doubts were effectively squashed when he realized that such a plan would endear him to Hilde even more.

According to Heero, all he had to do was sweep Hilde off of her feet like he did when they were first dating. Since Hilde had the car today, he rode with Heero back to his apartment. From there, he had whined, cajoled and even begged Heero to help him before he left.

Two hours into their plan and everything was starting to fall into place. Duo couldn't help the lopsided grin that came to his face as he admired their handiwork. The living room looked spotless, all of the dirty dishes were now clean, the laundry was currently being washed and dried and their bedroom actually looked presentable.

Turning around swiftly, he caught Heero in an unexpected hug. "Thanks buddy! I owe you big time for this!"

Heero didn't even bat an eyelash by Duo's sudden affection. By now he was used to randomly being attacked by the braided idiot. Not that he really considered Duo to be an idiot, but sometimes he really did wonder whether or not Duo had all of his marbles in the jar.

Successfully prying Duo's arms from around him, he glared before going to the door. "Screw this up and I'll kill you."

Duo laughed as he opened it. "You've been telling me that for years and you haven't done it yet. I think you've gone soft, Heero."

The man in question said nothing as he walked out of the apartment. As soon as Duo closed the door, he made a beeline for the bathroom. Hilde would be home shortly and he still had to get ready.

Humming quietly to himself, Duo couldn't wait until she got home. There was no way he was going to be permanently stuck on Hilde's naughty list. Oh no, he was going to make sure of that tonight. He was absolutely certain that his plan was fool-proof. He could just see it now.

Hilde would be so pleased that she'd forgive him on the spot. Then came the best part: making up with one another. That alone was enough to make him smile broadly and forget about any doubts he might have had.

Stopping off at his room momentarily, he undressed until he was only clad in his boxers and then he grabbed a fresh pair. Afterwards, he left his room and went to the bathroom. He left the door open just a bit so the steam wouldn't fog up the mirrors.

Opening up the cabinet doors, he reached in and grabbed a towel and a face cloth. Then he proceeded to tie his hair up. As he was busy fighting with his hair, he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror.

"No wonder Hilde always laughs when I come out of the bathroom!" He muttered.

His hair was piled on top of his head in a messy bun with a few wayward ends sticking out. Quite honestly, he looked like a very homely librarian. All he really needed was the thick black glasses and he'd fit the part perfectly.

Snickering quietly, he finished the job and hopped into the shower. Turning both the cold and hot water on, he adjusted the water's temperature and then he got to work. Time was of the essence so he couldn't take a long shower like he normally did.

* * *

When Duo first suggested coming to Earth for a while, she should have had told him absolutely not. But one look at those big, earnest, violet eyes had been her undoing. She couldn't possibly turn him down. He really wanted to see everyone again and the offer of working for Preventers hadn't helped matters either.

Their scrap-yard business had been doing fairly well, but one morning Duo had told her over breakfast that he wanted to do something more challenging. At first, she had thought he meant trying something new with their business. Imagine her surprise when he announced that he was going to Earth for a little bit to help Lady Une and the Preventers.

She knew full well what that meant. Long, restless nights wondering if he was safe and lots of stress she didn't need. She had merely smiled softly and told him she wanted him to be happy and if this is what he wanted to do then she would fully support him.

She hadn't been counting on Duo to pick up on her uneasiness though. Once he managed to coax her into telling him what was really wrong, he had smiled so gently and held her, promising that he wouldn't take any risky chances now that he had someone waiting for him. He promised that he would always be careful and he wouldn't be nearly as reckless as he had been during the wars.

Upon hearing those words, she had buried her face in his shirt to avoid having him see her tears. She might have liked to act tough but deep down, she was fragile. This isn't to say she couldn't hold her own. Hilde did have physical prowess. Duo just had an emotional hold on her. He was her greatest weakness.

She hadn't lost him yet **… **but there were times where she found herself lying awake wondering whether or not tonight was the night she would get a phone call or a letter telling her that he wouldn't be coming home ever again.

She really did feel silly and irrational for feeling like this, but wasn't it enough that he had done his part during the wars? He didn't have to fight anymore**.** So why couldn't he let go?

Wasn't she enough to make him want to stay home and make a life with her?

She hadn't bothered to tell him everything, but just the fact that he knew she didn't want him fighting was enough. Of course this was all before the idiot had decided to flirt with their waitress and effectively make her wish she was just as tall and strong as Trowa.

She would have loved to kick his ass from Earth all the way to the Colonies for having the nerve to flirt with another woman right in front of her. She really shouldn't have been surprised by this. Even before they made it official, she had always known he was an incurable flirt. It was just a part of his personality. But what truly irked her was the fact that he did it so effortlessly.

All it took was a smile or a compliment from him to attract unwanted attention. His hair already fascinated people more than she liked.

Sometimes she couldn't help wondering what she saw in him. He could be pretty childish and petty sometimes. At his worst, he could be extremely obnoxious and moody. But despite his shortcomings, she wouldn't change a single thing about him … except for that one tiny little quirk.

If it killed her, she would find some kind of way to break him of that particular habit.

Closing her eyes, she tried to shake off all of her negative feelings. She had just had the longest day of her life, no thanks to her job. All she wanted to do now was enjoy a nice, long soak in the tub, get some food in her system and maybe even spend some quality time with Duo.

She rummaged around for a bit in her purse, looking for her house keys. As she went to put the key in the door, she could only hope that Duo hadn't made it home before her. She really didn't feel like talking to him or seeing him at the moment.

She was sure just the sight of him would be enough to bring back her irritation.

When she got the door open, she walked inside, never once stopping to pay attention to her surroundings. It was almost as if her body was on autopilot. She threw her purse on the sofa then she walked right into the kitchen.

She went straight to the refrigerator, pulled out a bottle and grabbed a glass off the counter top. Then she proceeded to plop down in one of the kitchen chairs. As she was pouring her drink, it was only then that she noticed she was holding a bottle of wine.

She stared at the bottle for a long moment until she finally took notice of her surroundings.

The kitchen lights had been turned to the lowest setting, there was a vase filled with lilies sitting on the table, their very best dishes had been laid out and something wonderful was wafting from the oven.

She shot out of her chair in an instant.

"What's going on here?" She asked aloud.

Silence greeted her as she walked over to the oven. She grabbed one of the oven mitts and opened the door. What she saw inside was almost enough to make her cry.

A plump and juicy chicken had been cooked to perfection along with seasoned vegetables. Closing the door, she looked at the stove top and saw a small tray of freshly baked rolls as well as her favorite dessert, cherry pie.

Taking a few steps backwards, she was just about to turn around when she collided into something firm. She looked up and her heart leapt right into her throat.

Standing before her dressed in a pair of freshly ironed slacks and a black dress shirt, she couldn't help gaping at her boyfriend. He just looked so good! Maybe it was the combination of having had a bad day and being completely exhausted and hungry but whatever it was that took control of her senses, she could care less.

She grabbed his face and kissed him, long and hard.

Duo certainly wasn't complaining. He wrapped his arms around her and prolonged the kiss for as long as possible.

The kiss was only broken when they both realized they needed air. Grinning at one another like they were secret conspirators, Duo took her by the hand and led her to the table. He walked behind her and pulled out her chair. Once she sat down, he pushed the chair in and then he went to the oven.

He took out their dinner and set it down on the stove top. He came back to the table, got her plate and filled it up with food. Then he placed the plate in front of her while he went to fix his own.

He would have poured her a glass of wine but she had already done so herself. After he came back to the table with his plate, she stared at her food, then at him. This continued for a little while until Duo finally broke the silence. "What? It's not poisoned if that's what you're worried about."

She didn't miss the smirk on his face. The affectionate teasing behind his words hadn't gone unnoticed either. Raising an eyebrow, she crossed her arms. "Just what are you up to Duo Maxwell?"

The smirk became a tender smile. "What, it's a crime for a guy to do something nice for his girlfriend?"

Returning his smile, she uncrossed her arms. "No, but in your case it should be."

He chuckled at her little jab then he stuck his tongue out at her. "Well if you're going to be so suspicious then I suppose I could always take that cherry pie with me to Headquarters tomorrow. I'm sure the others will appreciate having something edible to eat for a change instead of that mystery food down at the cafeteria."

"Then tell them to start bringing their own lunches." She said, before digging into her meal.

Another chuckle came from Duo. So far he hadn't touched his food because he was too busy watching her. She had only taken a few bites of her meal before another thought hit her. _There's no way he could have done all of this on his own…_

Slightly pushing her plate away, she fixed him with a pointed glare. She knew what he was trying to do. He was trying to butter her up so she would forget all about his flirting. Well he had another thing coming if he thought he could worm his way out of this!

"Hilde?" He questioned nervously.

He felt more than saw the dark look in her eyes. He had really been banking on this to smooth things over with Hilde. He knew he could be a bit troublesome at times but he didn't think he deserved the cold shoulder.

Standing up abruptly, she narrowed her eyes at him. "I can't believe you! If you think this will be enough to get you off the hook then you're sadly mistaken! I bet you didn't even do all of this did you? Just once why can't you just admit you were wrong and actually follow through when you say you're not going to do something?!"

His first reaction had been to recoil visibly. He could practically feel the acid dripping off of her words. By now he should have known to just quit while he was ahead but he never did know when to keep his mouth shut.

"I was trying to apologize! I really don't know why you're so upset with me. You're acting like I purposely flirt with girls all the time because I find it fun. It's not like…" He trailed off, eyes widening when he realized what he just said.

Her look went from dark to downright chilling. "See there you go again! You're making up excuses and trying to justify your actions. How many times do you plan on making things up to me Duo? This isn't the first time you've done something without thinking about the consequences."

Getting up out of his chair, he went to hug her but she backed away from him. She was still pissed and he didn't have any clue on how to fix the situation.

He could only watch as she left the kitchen and went to their bedroom. Sighing, he sat down at the table and began rubbing his temples. Apparently, he had really done it this time.

* * *

He knew something was wrong the moment he got in the car. The atmosphere was so thick with tension; he could have cut it with a knife. All throughout the day, he had been feeling a bit off since his previous conversation with Quatre and now he knew why.

Quatre was in one of his moods again. His entire body was practically screaming irritation but for some reason, he hadn't said a word yet.

If his rigid posture and refusal to talk were any indication, he was definitely troubled. There were few times Trowa could remember seeing Quatre like this. Sure, he had seen him at his best and worst, but this was the most emotional distress he'd ever seen Quatre in.

The car ride had been short, but the entire time his eyes stayed on Quatre. He wasn't the type to initiate conversations, so he was currently hoping that Quatre would notice his staring and start talking. Unfortunately either Quatre was doing a really good job of ignoring him or he was too caught up in his own thoughts to pay him any attention.

Now that the car had finally stopped, he figured now would be a good time to find out what was bothering him. "Quatre?"

He didn't even get a response. Instead, he was greeted with Quatre unbuckling his seatbelt, opening the car door and shutting it in his face. This wasn't his best friend. The Quatre he knew was a warm and gentle person. People generally flocked to him but clearly his mood was showing otherwise.

He wasted no time in getting out of the car and following Quatre. He was still keeping a vigilant watch on him. If he couldn't pry the information out of him then he would just wait for the right moment to bring up the topic again.

Truthfully, he was really worried about him. It seemed like he and Dorothy were fighting more than usual. He was used to the long phone calls where he would have to listen to Quatre's complaints whether they were about Dorothy, his Board of Directors or even if he just needed some advice.

"Welcome to Mon Petit Ange! How can I help you tonight?"

Instantly Quatre's moodiness seemed to disappear as his manners came back. A slight smile graced his face as his posture lost its early rigidness. "Yes, I have reservations under Winner."

The hostess quickly typed up some information on her computer. Then she looked up with a polite smile. "Right this way please."

The hostess grabbed two menus off of the countertop and began walking as both Quatre and Trowa followed behind her. The restaurant itself was rather comfortable and down to earth. The atmosphere was friendly and vibrant and all of the employees seemed happy. What really caught Trowa's eye, however, were the impressionist paintings hanging on the dark blue walls. If he wasn't mistaken, he could also hear a faint stream of classic music.

_Only Quatre would pick a restaurant that plays classic music._

Arriving at their table, both of them sat down as the hostess placed the menus in front of them. "Your waiter will be with you shortly."

They nodded and picked up their menus as the hostess left and went back to helping other customers. Trowa was the first to put his menu on the table. Not quite ready to let the subject drop, he tried again. "Quatre, what's going on?" He asked softly.

It wasn't a demand or a plea but more like gentle probing. He waited silently as Quatre slowly removed the menu from in front of his face. Once the menu was lying down on the table, Trowa was able to get a good look at his face.

Early he seemed frustrated but now he just seemed defeated. His eyes didn't have its usual spark and he wasn't smiling. He just seemed empty.

Sighing, he looked down as he folded his hands and placed them in his lap. "Dorothy."

He nodded in understanding. He had figured that much out already. Now he was just waiting for the full story.

"Lately we've been arguing more so than we normally do. I don't know if it's because I'm annoying her or if it's because I've been too busy with work but nothing I do is good enough anymore. No matter what, I'm always wrong. I'm beginning to wonder if maybe it was a mistake for me to ask her out…" He trailed off, not even bothering to look back up at Trowa.

He had no idea how to respond to those statements. He wasn't in a relationship at the moment so he couldn't exactly say, "Oh of course I understand what you're going through!" He was sure if he said that then Quatre would never forgive him.

Before he could even formulate a response, however, Quatre spoke up again. His voice was wavering, almost as if he was struggling to keep his anger under control. "She keeps telling me I'm too sensitive for my own good and she won't stop reminding me to be more 'manly'. Do you think maybe I jumped into this relationship too soon?"

When their eyes met, Trowa couldn't stand to see the self doubt in his eyes. He was reminded of years ago when they first met. Back then, Quatre's eyes always seemed to be clouded with self-doubt, insecurities and worry. Gradually, he was able to overcome those feelings, but now they were threatening to return.

Taking a moment to collect his thoughts, Trowa knew he had the power to either lift his spirits or crush them. Another look at him and he knew which option to pick. "I think Dorothy is afraid of losing you."

Not wasting a moment, he continued onward. "There's a possibility she might be feeling insecure and doesn't know how to express her feelings for you. So she hides behind witty banter, not realizing just how much her actions and words bother you."

Quatre nodded in agreement. "That's true but it still doesn't tell me how to make things right with her. She shies away from any affection I show her and she's not even impressed when I try to surprise her with a phone call, flowers or a spontaneous date."

"Maybe you should try showing her what she would be losing if you left her." He offered casually.

Quatre's eyes widened. "Just what are you suggesting?" He asked, genuine confusion lacing his words.

Trowa couldn't help the slight smile that came to his face. "Make her jealous by letting her see and realize just how lucky she is to have you."

Understanding suddenly dawned on him as he smiled. "It's times like these that I'm extremely grateful to have you for a friend."

Trowa merely nodded but there was no mistaking the fact that he was happy. He had successfully managed to get rid of Quatre's doubts but now there was an even greater challenge ahead.

Just how in the world would Quatre be able to pull this off without getting killed?


	6. Jealousy At Its Best

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything else associated with Gundam Wing. See bottom of the page for Author's Notes.

He was starting to wish he had disobeyed Lady Une and spent the evening with Relena. At least with her, he would have been enjoying himself. But no, he was currently stuck at Headquarters with a bunch of rookies. Hadn't he suffered enough today?

He had to cancel a date with his girlfriend, he hadn't been able to enjoy his lunch break, he was promptly chewed out by said girlfriend and he even had to help his best friend with his love life. Was it too much to ask that he got a break? Apparently, not even the great Heero Yuy was above feeling frustrated.

It was taking all of his willpower not to pick up his gun and shoot something.

His so-called mandatory training session was basically him overseeing fifty potential Preventer candidates as they took their exams. Yes, that's right. Heero Yuy had been reduced to playing instructor. As much as he was tempted to bribe the whole lot of them with passing grades, he just couldn't take that chance. It wouldn't look good for Lady Une or Preventers if he let the rookies loose without actually being certified as Preventers.

At least he wasn't alone in his suffering.

The urge to shoot something was still present, but he felt a bit better knowing that Wufei and Sally had to participate as well. Overall, there were three parts to the test. The first part was the written part, followed by a medical examination, and then finally came the demonstrations.

Each candidate had to display accurate proficiency with a variety of weapons, martial arts, detonating bombs, negotiations, etc, etc. Heero would have rather been in charge of the last section of the test but Wufei had been looking forward to this for months.

For some reason, Wufei had refused to switch with Heero. He hadn't bothered to tell Heero his reasons but his odd behavior was confusing. Any other time, Wufei wouldn't have minded switching duties but this time he wouldn't budge. Not being the overly inquisitive type, however, Heero hadn't done a thing to find out what was going on with Wufei.

Resisting the urge to sigh, his eyes wandered over to the clock on the wall.

_9:45 p.m._

His eyes lingered on the clock for a moment before he finally tore his gaze away. He couldn't very well make time go any faster just by looking at the clock.

His eyes drifted towards Wufei, who was currently walking around the room making sure none of the trainees were cheating. His arms were crossed over his chest as he walked down the aisles. If his frown and constant pacing were any indication, it showed that Wufei was getting a bit itchy as well.

Wufei glanced over at Heero and for a moment, their eyes seemed to communicate the exact same message: _I'm bored as hell._

After watching Wufei and the students for a few more moments, he turned his attention to Sally. She seemed to be absorbed in a book, but he couldn't quite make out the title. Straining his eyes a bit, he was able to glimpse the words: "makeover" and "tips".

_What would Sally need with something like that?_

His curious gaze must have lingered on her for too long because he was totally unprepared for Sally's question. Her eyes never left her book as she asked, "Heero is there something I can help you with?"

Mentally cursing to himself, Heero shook his head before looking back down at his desk. He reached for some papers and then began to "read" them. At least he was hoping Sally would believe that. The last thing he wanted to hear was Sally's teasing remarks about him being nosy.

She looked up to see where Wufei was and when she saw he was a good distance away, she leaned down and whispered, "You're probably wondering what this book is for aren't you?"

He quickly picked up on the soft teasing behind her words.

"Not really." He replied smoothly.

She patted his shoulder as a grin came to her face. "Yeah, and I'm the queen of the World. If you must know, this little book is going to help me with Wufei."

Her first comment had been enough to get a smirk out of him, but the second one made Heero raise an eyebrow. He hadn't really thought Sally was the type to buy into that kind of thing… but there was always a first time for everything.

"Now I know you're probably thinking, 'Why in the hell would you think this is going to help you'? But here's the thing. I'm not exactly using the book for myself. You see a close friend of mine's is visiting and let's just say Wufei hasn't exactly been happy about that."

Chuckling just a bit, he couldn't help himself as he asked, "Your friend isn't a woman?"

Sally shot him a wicked look. "What, all my friends have to be girls? As it so happens, this particular friend is a man. Wufei won't admit it but he's been crazy with jealousy. He hasn't let me out of his sight since my friend got here."

"Have I met him?"

She shook her head. "No, but you'll meet him tomorrow if you're lucky. But back to the point. If Wufei thinks I've changed any little thing about myself, he's going to go ballistic and assume I'm in love with my friend. Of course, Wufei's just being an idiot, because my friend is happily married with his first child on the way. But Wufei doesn't know that, nor has he even bothered to ask. He's too busy thinking that my friend is trying to put the moves on me."

"And here I thought you were innocent." He responded, a faint note of amusement in his voice.

She lightly pushed his shoulder as her smirk became a full-fledged smile. "I never said I was."

Before the two could continue their conversation, Wufei came up to the desk and sat next to Heero. Sally and Heero exchanged one more amused glance before going back to their respective tasks.

"They're doing quite well."

Heero merely nodded as he focused back on his papers. He really did need to get them out of the way. After that little incident concerning a particular report, he was determined not to repeat the same mistake.

* * *

She had willingly followed this man to Mars, gave up her life on Earth and her friends to be with him. Now she was beginning to wonder what had possessed her to do so. It was one thing to be loyal and trusting. It was a completely different thing altogether to have him take her feelings for granted.

The damn man was so busy working that he hardly had any time for her. He was always gone and never got home before she did. She tried everything to keep the romance alive but when your husband didn't show up for a dinner you spent hours making or when he came home too tired to even spend some time with you, it just stopped being worth it.

Nowadays, she was lucky if she got a kiss or a hug. On some days, she was fortunate enough to get both. So now she stopped cooking and trying to surprise him with little romantic gestures. As far as she was concerned, he could eat a sandwich and then go to sleep without her next to him.

If the man couldn't appreciate her or her efforts, then why bother at all?

She wouldn't even let him come into the bedroom anymore. He was no longer allowed to sleep there because every time he came home, he went straight to the bathroom, took a shower, came to their room, changed and then promptly went to sleep.

There was no, 'Hey sweetheart, I missed you. How was your day? Dinner was great. I was thinking of you today.' Hell, the idiot didn't even want to cuddle with her.

At first, things had been great. He never worked himself to the bone and he certainly made an effort to be home at a reasonable time. They actually ate meals together, talked to one another and spent time with one another.

But then something changed.

She didn't know if it was something she had done or if he was falling out of love with her. She might have been grasping at straws but she had nothing else to work with. When she tried to talk to him about their current situation, he would clam up or he would make up some lame excuse about having to do some last minute work.

In hindsight, she had every reason to be upset with him. He was pushing her away and she couldn't stand it. She had to deal with this sort of behavior during the wars as well. When everything had finally settled down, she thought perhaps he had finally put the past behind him.

Oh how wrong she was.

If anything, he seemed to be reverting back to the man he used to be during the wars. Truthfully, she was getting tired of always having to pick up the pieces. She gave him everything, no questions asked. But somehow he always managed to take her for granted.

Didn't he realize that he wasn't alone anymore? He had her, and Relena was back on Earth waiting for them. Maybe if he wasn't so busy all of the time, he'd realize that she was there to help him and support him.

Sighing irritably, she made up her mind.

She was tired of sitting around and waiting for him. This time, he wouldn't be able to sweet talk her with empty promises. One way or another, this was going to end. She left their apartment, with every intention of dragging him home if she had to.

* * *

Zechs was currently busy helping out with the latest addition concerning the Mars Terraformation Project. So far, they had managed to make it to the halfway point. Most of the houses were up and running, the water filtration pumps were working well and the air was beginning to be a bit more breathable without having to use air filters.

There were, however, two major glitches in their work.

People were having trouble adjusting to the temperatures and the dust storms were gradually becoming more violent and destructive. By now, all of the workers had lost count of how many structures had been destroyed by the storms and how many employees were stuck at home, suffering from exhaustion, dehydration or exposure to the often changing temperatures.

Granted, he would have preferred being at home in the comfort of Noin's arms, but he couldn't just abandon this. If the project failed, he wouldn't be the one to suffer. There was no telling what kind of backlash Relena would have to deal with if the project fell through.

For a moment, he stopped working on the generator as his thoughts briefly wandered to Relena. A small smile came to his face as he remembered their very last encounter.

She hadn't been too happy when she found out that he was leaving for Mars. She was looking forward to the chance of spending time with him and getting to know him more. But he couldn't very well stay on Earth after what he had done.

He hadn't told her as much, but he did promise that he would visit often. That had done little to appease her, but he was a man of his word. He'd make sure her project was a success and then he would come back.

By then, most likely everyone would have forgotten about him. More importantly, he'd be able to stand before her, having accomplished something worthwhile. Not like the last time where he almost destroyed the Earth.

"I need to call her and make sure she's all right." He muttered to himself as he went back to work.

Contrary to popular belief, he wasn't the psycho obsessed brother that Heero thought he was. He knew he wasn't easy to get along with nor was he very sociable. Of course, it would be easy for him to blame all of this on his upbringing. He was constantly around soldiers and war. He didn't have time to waste trying to make himself into a likable person.

For a while, he even had trouble believing his life held value, but that was only because he was so used to fighting. He hadn't had the time to adjust to a normal life. He was a solider and soldiers were only good for fighting and wars. Of course, it had taken a good talking to (more like slap) from Noin to make him realize that he had so much to live for.

But perhaps what really irritated him the most was how those close to Relena assumed he wanted to control her life. He wanted to be involved in her life but he knew she was an adult and could take care of herself. That still didn't stop him from wishing they were closer though.

And a certain individual by the name of Heero Yuy did nothing to soothe his nerves either.

Most people were under the impression that they hated one another. Couldn't tolerate one another because both of them were vying for Relena's affections, however, the real reason was simple.

They were too similar, which is why they always seemed to rub each other the wrong way. It didn't help matters that they were both too stubborn and prideful to admit that simple little truth to themselves.

The sooner they realized it, the sooner they could put the past behind them. Unfortunately, they had no intentions of admitting such a thing. They would rather hide behind the fact that they both wanted the best for Relena, rather than realize that they were actually kindred souls.

Frowning, Zechs gripped the wrench tightly as he tightened a loose bolt. If he managed to finish early then he could go home and try to fix things with Noin.

Sleeping on the sofa and having to prepare his own meals was definitely cruel and unusual punishment. He was a man and like most males, he had no intention of learning the finer points of cooking. He could deal with missing edible meals but not being able to sleep with his wife was something else entirely.

He would never admit it out loud but it felt so nice having someone waiting for him. Just knowing that when he came home, she'd be there to welcome him with a smile and a kiss was enough to put him in good spirits for most of the day.

Moving on to the next bolt, he was completely unprepared when he felt someone tap him on the shoulder. "Whatever it is, I'm busy so you'll have to figure it out without me." He replied with a little more force than necessary.

The person said nothing and instead reached around him and grabbed the wrench out of his hands. He was already feeling a bit moody. The last thing he needed was some smart ass to come along and test his patience.

"I'm trying to work here so if you don't mind…" He snapped as he turned around, only to face Noin.

His voice seemed to have left him as he took in her body language. Her eyes were narrowed, she was tapping one foot and she was clutching his wrench rather tightly. If he didn't know any better, he could have sworn she was debating whether or not she should smack him with the tool.

Then he flinched slightly when he realized how nasty his earlier comments had been. Noin wasn't one to get angry often but when she did, it was not a pleasant sight.

For a moment, the two just stared at one another. His mind was screaming at him to say something, anything to fix the situation. She, on the other hand, was seriously wondering if she should just be the bigger person and forgive him.

The spell was broken, however, as Noin began talking. "We need to talk. Now." She placed the wrench back in the toolbox and began walking away. She wasn't about to start a scene in public.

Zechs sighed and followed after her obediently. The last thing he wanted to do was dig himself a deeper grave.

* * *

The exam had gone over well, but that was to be expected. The candidates this year had proven to be much more dependable than last year's recruits. He was hoping his faith in the trainees wasn't misplaced. He often assisted Heero with the recruits but if none of them advanced to Preventers status, then it wouldn't look very well for either of their reputations.

But he would worry about all of that later. Right now he had to figure out how to prevent that man from stealing Sally.

He knew his feelings for her went far deeper than he cared to admit but he had no idea how to deal with them. He had been married once, and while the relationship hadn't exactly had the time to properly flourish, he was certain that he never wanted to experience such heartache again.

He figured it was far safer and wiser to avoid romance altogether. After all, what sense did it make to give your heart away? He wasn't stupid enough to think love would never be part of his life, but currently he had no interest in it.

He preferred to have control. He knew he couldn't control everything in his life except for a few major decisions as well as minor choices but love was something completely different. Love made a person weak, vulnerable, prone to pain, suffering and heartbreak. He just didn't think he could take another emotional wound.

He might have liked to pretend he was strong but if he were to be completely honest with himself, he knew that his heart was so terribly fragile. One wrong word or action would be enough to send it into chaos. He knew that would ultimately happen if he gave in to his feelings for Sally.

So that is why he did everything in his power to ignore her constant attempts to get closer to him. He was comfortable enough just being her partner and friend. But he also knew that wasn't enough for Sally.

He often caught the subtle looks she gave him when she thought he wasn't looking. There was no denying the love and warmth in her eyes when he held her gaze long enough. And he certainly wasn't ignorant enough to miss the moments where she was flirting.

"Mr. Chang, are you ready yet?" A timid and hesitant voice questioned.

Quickly snapping out of his musings, he found that everyone, including Heero and Sally were staring at him. He looked around the room briefly, suddenly feeling very self-conscious and partially embarrassed.

He hadn't meant to let his thoughts drift so easily. Schooling his face into a calm and impassive mask, he positioned his body in a fighting stance. The recruit mimicked his movements albeit awkwardly.

"Your stance is off. Bring your right foot a little closer to your body while moving the left foot back a bit. And don't ball your hands into fists. You have to be collected, not tense." He replied patiently, waiting for the trainee to do the same.

This time the student mirrored his actions, though he still looked like a deer mouse caught in the talons of a hawk.

_Damn you woman. Just thinking about you is enough to disorient me._

He was very close to scowling but he caught himself in time. He really didn't like the idea of having to hold back but if he didn't then not only would Sally be on his case but he'd also have to deal with Lady Une.

And the last thing he wanted to deal with was a royally ticked off boss.

Repressing his irritability, he struck out at the recruit, only to pull back at the last minute in an attempt to throw the trainee off guard. Whether through sheer luck or stupidity, the trainee was able to step back quickly, just barely avoiding a direct blow to the stomach.

Narrowing his eyes slightly, Wufei realized that perhaps he wouldn't have to go easy on any of the students. That alone was enough to almost bring a smile to his face.

_This should be able to distract me long enough to forget about my problem._

And so the final part of the candidates' exams had officially begun. However, there was only one slight problem. It looked like this year's prospective agents were in for the ride of their lives, compliments of one frustrated man with no idea on how to effectively win the heart of his woman.

_**Author's Notes**_: According to all of my lovely reviewers, the original title of this story is much more popular so the title will not change. Major kudos to those of you who really liked my interpretation of Hilde! I've always had trouble with her because she didn't pop up enough in the series so we could get a clear glimpse of her personality. BUT I do have my beta to thank for giving me a nice, swift kick in the rear with Hilde. She helped me make Hilde much more believable. I've said it once and I'll say it again though: Go check out PimpMastaPopo's stories! She's awesome! As usual, italics will denote character thoughts. Looks like things are heating up for all of our couples huh? All joking aside though, I'm very happy that all of you are enjoying this story so much. One particular review touched me quite a bit. PJ, you have NO idea how much your review made my day. That's not to say the rest of you guys haven't done so either. It's just so rewarding to know that I'm not writing this story in vain and that there are other GW fans out there like me who actually respect the characters, appreciate their complexity and want to keep them as close to their personalities from the series as possible. It's just really humbling to know that you guys think I'm doing such a good job with all of the major GW characters. I know it's going to sound silly but Gundam Wing has a special place in my heart so to hear other Gundam Wing fans tell me that they like what I'm writing… Well it just makes me feel special you know? I guess what I'm basically trying to say is thank you all very much for taking the time out to read my story. I hope this chapter and future chapters continue to meet your expectations.


	7. Major Complications

_**Author's Notes**_: Mwuhahahaha! Apparently I must be doing something right because all of you guys are telling me that you're enjoying my story! I can't even begin to describe how thankful I am that I have such wonderful reviewers! Thank you very much for sticking with me. This time around, things are going to get a bit sticky so you might want to bring your hard hats and safety suits! As usual, there will be lots of stuff going on so try to keep up okay and italics will denote character thoughts. There's also one instance where there's going to be a flashback but I wrote that section strictly in italics. I hope this chapter is to everyone's liking. Of course, this story is being beta read by the lovely PimpMastaPopo. Major kudos to her for being such an awesome beta! No major warnings this time but I promise you this: things definitely start to heat up in this chapter! At this time, I'd like to say this chapter is dedicated especially to RedLion2. If any of you guys have read her works or visited her page lately, she's getting ready to leave the fandom for a bit. Personally I think she's one of the best GW authors I have ever had the honor of meeting as well as reading her works. So with that said, RedLion2, I wish you luck and hope you come back to join us one day.

_**Disclaimer**_: Gundam Wing does not belong to me. I am not making a profit from this story. Anything I have written thus far and will write is strictly meant for entertainment purposes only.

There was no way he would be able to do this. He just couldn't go through with it. He was considered many things, but he definitely wasn't a liar. He knew Trowa meant well but he was starting to regret having asked him for help. He knew his relationship with Dorothy was in trouble, but could he really risk her wrath by carrying out their plan?

"You're tense."

He looked over at Trowa for a second before averting his eyes. He continued looking around his office, taking notice of the photo of Catherine that sat on his desk right to the books lined up on the shelf next to his desk.

Trowa bit back a sigh as he opened up one of the desk drawers. He rummaged around for quite a bit before finally pulling out a pen. "You're thinking too much."

Quatre could only continue watching him. He opened his mouth and closed it quickly. He wanted to voice his objections to the plan but he didn't want to offend Trowa either.

"If you're having second thoughts…" He let the phrase hang in the air.

Quatre shook his head as he found his voice. "It's not that! I just don't think this is a good idea." He stole a quick glance at Trowa, noticing the subtle frown on his face. "No offense." He added hurriedly.

This time Trowa did sigh. "So what do you want to do then?"

Quatre got up from his seat and began pacing. His hands were clasped behind his back as he walked back and forth. Trowa watched him for a while before shrugging and going back to work on his report. If Quatre didn't want to salvage the remains of his relationship with Dorothy, then who was he to interfere?

"I appreciate you trying to help me Trowa, but maybe if I try talking to her one more time?" He questioned hesitantly.

Trowa rolled his eyes as he muttered, "You did try talking to her and look where that got you."

Quatre stopped pacing long enough to shoot him a dirty look. "I heard that."

Trowa stopped writing and looked up at Quatre. He looked annoyed but really _**he**_ was the one who should be agitated. He was only trying to help him and instead Quatre was starting to act as if he didn't want any help.

Narrowing his eyes slightly, the words came out before he could stop them. "Do whatever you want."

A thick silence began to permeate the room. Trowa couldn't bring himself to look at Quatre. He knew he shouldn't have said those words. He was only speaking out of turn and now he probably managed to make things even worse. Quatre, on the other hand, said nothing as he turned on his heel and left, making sure to slam the door on his way out.

As his footsteps grew lighter, he could only lean back in his chair as one thought continually ran through his mind. _You're an idiot._

* * *

Things were quiet, too quiet for her liking. Normally, headquarters was buzzing with activity. The rookies were usually busy trying to carry out their orders and the senior agents were almost always tied up with paperwork or preparing for their next assignment. The training room was always in use and even the break room tended to have a few stranglers idly chatting while others were content to sip away on their last cup of coffee.

Today, however, the building was eerily silent. And she didn't like it. Not one bit.

Her staff was notorious for being boisterous**.** So why was this morning so different from any other morning? Frowning, she pressed the intercom button on her desk.

"I want Agent Po in my office now."

Her brisk tone of voice left no room for arguments. "Yes ma'am."

She walked over to the window and stood there for a moment as she stared at everyone down below on the streets. Some people were hurrying across busy intersections while others were taking their time. Some looked like they were on their cell phones while others looked like they were in the middle of trying to enjoy a late breakfast.

_Is this __how you envisioned Earth Mr. Treize?_

Placing one hand on the window, she started thinking back to her time with him. He was such a beautifully tragic man. It was easy for people to write him off as another would-be dictator, but she knew better. He had a brilliant mind and such a wonderful soul. He was by far the gentlest and kindest man she had ever known. No one else had seen that side of him except for her.

His death hadn't been easy on her, but she was still alive, striving to carry out his will. Regrettably, he died before he could finish his plans, which lead her to create the Preventers. It was her duty to continue his legacy.

She just wished he was here to see how everything had turned out. She could feel the tears gathering in her eyes but she quickly blinked them away. She was done with crying. She was finished with torturing herself by always thinking about him. She had an organization to run and a daughter to care for. Now was not the time to let her one weakness consume her.

The sound of soft knocking on her office door interrupted her thoughts. Taking a slow breath and exhaling, she called out in a cool tone, "Come in."

She never bothered turning around as she heard the door open and close. "You requested to see me ma'am?"

Turning around abruptly, she narrowed her eyes slightly as she cupped her hands behind her back. "Yes I did. I want to know what has gotten into my employees."

Sally stared at her for a moment in confusion before a slight smile came to her face. She had to fight to stop smiling long enough to answer her boss. "I have no idea what you're talking about Lady Une."

Lady Une raised an eyebrow as she walked over to her desk and leaned against it. She leveled a cool gaze at Sally before replying, "You're one of my best informed agents. If anyone knows what goes on around here, it'd be you. So spare me the theatrics and tell me what's going on with everyone."

This time, Sally couldn't resist smiling. "As direct and to the point as always, I see."

There was no mistaking the subtle teasing behind her words. She was one of the few people that could actually get away with behaving in such a manner around Lady Une. If anyone else tried to be so flippant and casual with Lady Une, they'd quickly find themselves unemployed as well as blacklisted.

Good thing Lady Une considered her a friend.

"Duo hasn't made it in this morning and rumor has it that he might not show up at all today. Heero is still annoyed because you interfered with his personal time. Trowa is currently busy filling out the paperwork for his latest assignment. As for Quatre, he clocked in earlier but he was last seen talking with Trowa."

Lady Une began to idly drum one finger on her desk. "Theatrics remember?"

Sally chuckled a bit before replying, "Basically you've got three very disgruntled employees who all think you're a cruel and sadistic boss for messing with their love lives."

_Four if you include Wufei_. A small voice in the back of her mind nagged her.

Lady Une smirked slightly before gazing at Sally. "Well then what do you suggest, Agent Po? I can't very well give them any vacation time. If they're not needed here at the office then they'll be busy with their assignments."

Without even cracking a smile, she dryly mentioned, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were enjoying this."

Her boss feigned innocence as she responded, "I could never be happy knowing that my employees aren't happy."

For a moment, everything was quiet until both women began laughing. Sally was the first to recover. "You're full of it you know that Une?"

"And you're just realizing that Po?" She retorted as the traces of merriment remained on her face.

Sally shook her head as she joked, "And to think you were once feared as one of the greatest soldiers in OZ… If only your fellow comrades could see you now."

Une rolled her eyes as she smiled slowly. "Do you have any idea how mundane a desk job is? Unlike you and the rest of my agents, I'm stuck doing a good majority of the paperwork. Besides, someone has to be sensible and look after the whole lot of you."

"So now we're children?" She asked in mock disbelief.

"Not all of you but there are quite a few of you I worry about." She deadpanned.

Sally sighed as she began walking to the door. "I'll keep you posted but don't expect me to take any unnecessary risks."

As she was leaving, Une couldn't help herself as she said, "You work with former terrorists! It comes with the job description!"

She was met with Sally's laughter as the door closed. Having finally found out what was going on, she took a seat at her desk all the while wondering just exactly how things would play themselves out. She had a few guesses in mind but she knew one thing for certain. Life around headquarters was definitely about to get interesting.

* * *

Last night hadn't gone according to plan at all. Instead of Hilde instantly forgiving him and everything going back to normal, she got angry and locked him out of the bedroom. People tended to say he was a fool but he didn't have a death wish. He knew it was better to let her cool off than to go and harass her.

He was very fond of his life after all.

After the argument, however, he hadn't had much of appetite, so he placed their dinner in the refrigerator. There was no sense in wasting a good meal. But he definitely put the wine to good use. He honestly didn't know what he had done to upset her so much. He knew she didn't like it when he was being too friendly or nice to women. For the life of him though, he never thought he was flirting.

What was wrong with a kind word here and there? As long as he made it clear that he wasn't interested, there was nothing to worry about, right?

His brows furrowed slightly as he frowned. _Yeah right Maxwell. If you caught her flirting with another guy, you wouldn't know what to do with yourself!_

He turned over on the sofa and closed his eyes, still frowning. He was a bit stiff from having spent the better part of the night trying to get comfortable. His entire night was spent twisting and turning as his thoughts kept going back to Hilde.

All that time spent making a nice, home-cooked meal and picking up around the apartment had been for nothing. But that was hardly the issue at hand. Their relationship had been changing very subtly over the past few weeks.

At first, he thought maybe it was because they were on Earth instead of the L2 Colony. Back on their home colony, things had been significantly simpler for the two of them. Their daily routine almost never changed. Both of them woke up around six a.m. and then spent the better part of the day working in their shop. Once they closed shop, they always made dinner together though it normally took longer than expected because he tended to get carried away by teasing her.

Nine times out of ten, their good natured teasing would lead to subtle flirting which would then lead to a kiss here and there. Before things could get too heated, however, they would stop only to realize that dinner was beyond saving. That was the main reason why Duo was now semi-banished from helping out in the kitchen.

A small grin crept onto his face as he remembered the night Hilde made her declaration.

_He knew she was trying to focus all of her attention on preparing their dinner but for the past week, he hadn't been able to spend any quality time with her. They were both constantly going back and forth preparing orders and shipping out orders. The only time they managed to see one another was during their lunch break. And even that was too short for him. _

_He was watching her very closely as she spooned a small amount of the spaghetti sauce onto the ladle. She blew on the spoon a few times before finally taking a small sip. She frowned a bit as she murmured, "It still doesn't taste right." _

_That was supposed to be his cue to hand her one of the spices from the countertop but right now he was too busy focusing on her lips. There was just a tiny little smudge of sauce on them. Just as she was getting ready to ask him to pass her the pepper, he reached over and cupped her face gently. His eyes shone mischievously as he leaned down and kissed her very slowly._

_That one kiss was all it took for dinner to be promptly forgotten. He would later go on to tell her that she was purposely teasing him which led him to retaliate._

Now that they were living on Earth instead of L2, however, he noticed that the closeness they once shared was gradually disappearing. They used to be able to talk long into the night about anything and everything. They didn't hold secrets from one another. If one of them was having a bad day, their playful banter was usually enough to cheer them up.

He knew things had slowly but surely changed between them but he ignored all of the red flags. He didn't want to admit it but he had already known that there was trouble on the horizon. He just refused to believe that their relationship might be in jeopardy, so instead he willingly ignored all of the warning signs. Thanks to his stubbornness, he was now stuck with one ticked off girlfriend, who was probably dreaming up all kinds of ways to torture him.

"Man, this sucks! I was trying to avoid something like this and I _still_ ended up getting in trouble. I bet I probably offended someone upstairs." He grumbled angrily as a slight shiver went down his spine.

Images of an angry Hilde were currently running through his head on full blast. She was a spunky woman but her most defining trait was definitely her temper. And unfortunately, he was almost always on the wrong side of her wrath. He really hoped he was just having a streak of bad luck. The last thing he needed was to die early.

Rising slowly from the sofa, he narrowed his eyes in determination. Work could wait. He had to soothe things over with his girlfriend, even if it killed him.

His long strides quickly took him to their bedroom door. Instead of knocking or even asking Hilde to open the door, he plucked a hairpin from his hair and began to pick the lock. Once he heard the familiar clicking sound, he wasted no time entering their room.

And what he saw was nearly enough to make him cry.

His beautiful and sweet Hilde was hugging her pillow tightly to herself. As he walked closer to the bed, he saw the remnants of tears on her cheeks.

_Oh you're really an idiot Maxwell!_ He thought to himself gloomily as guilt coursed through him.

He sat down next to the bed as he remembered the day he made a promise to himself. It had been towards the end of the first war where she risked her life just so she could be useful to him. On that day, he vowed to never endanger her or to let her endure any more suffering and pain ever again. Yet, he managed to break that promise because this time, she was hurting because of him.

He placed one hand on her cheek and slowly wiped the tears away. Right now he felt like dirt. After everything she had done for him, this is the thanks he gave her. She was the one person who stood with him. The one person who had seen him at his worst and yet she still stuck with him. He didn't know just how lucky he truly was.

Swallowing around the lump that seemed to suddenly form in his throat, he whispered softly, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

He leaned over and placed a small kiss on her forehead before finding his voice again. "Last night, I had plenty of time to think about what you said. And you're right. I shouldn't keep doing things that upset you. I think I finally know why you were so angry last night. It wasn't because of your gift or because I ruined our date. Lately, I haven't been very considerate towards you. I've been taking you for granted and not really taking the time to think about your feelings. I know I definitely wouldn't like it if you were casually flirting with guys all the time."

He stopped for a moment just so he could gather his thoughts. Just the mental image of her finding happiness with someone else was enough to make him sick to his stomach. He couldn't picture his life without her by his side. It just wasn't plausible. He needed her just as much as she needed him.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I really will try to do better. It won't be easy and I know I'll still do things that get on your nerves but I don't want to lose you Hilde."

He watched her for a few minutes before retracting his hand from her cheek. He got up from the floor and began walking towards the door.

"Duo?"

He froze at the doorway. There was absolutely no way she could have heard everything he just told her. He turned his head back to her and could only stare in muted horror as she sleepily blinked at him.

Apparently, he just couldn't win with her.

It was almost as if time had stopped for the two of them as their eyes never left one another's faces. Before he could stop himself, he was suddenly holding her close to him and burying his face in her short hair.

Moments ago she might have been sleepy but now she was completely awake. Her boyfriend was hugging her tightly, his face was buried in her hair and she could have sworn she heard him rambling on and on about how he was sorry.

Hesitantly, she wrapped her arms around him as she leaned against his chest. "What are you doing in here? I thought I locked you out."

He chuckled slightly. "Don't ask silly questions."

She tried to pull away from him but he wouldn't let go of her. When he wouldn't relinquish his hold on her, she settled for trying to look up at him instead. When she did, her heart felt like it was trying to burst out of her chest. His eyes were full of warmth and love but she had no idea where all of this was coming from.

To put it bluntly, she was confused as hell.

Last night they argued and she ended up locking him out of the bedroom. He should have been asleep on the sofa but here he was hugging her. That's when the sleepy fogginess suddenly disappeared. _Wait a minute… Isn't he supposed to be at the office right now? _

There was a hint of irritation and worry in her voice as she said, "I don't know what you're trying to pull Duo but you should be at work. And besides I have to…"

Anything else she might have wanted to say was effectively silenced as he finally released her long enough to kiss her senseless. It felt like her brain as well as all of her body parts had shut down completely. She shut her eyes as she let herself be lost in the kiss.

He was the first to pull away which caused her to protest just a little. She stuck her lower lip out a bit as she looked up at him. She was trying her best to look like she was pouting. Maybe then he'd be tempted to kiss her again. He couldn't help smiling as he leaned his forehead against hers. "Now what were you trying to say earlier babe?"

She kissed his nose. "I don't know. You made me forget."

"Good. That was my plan all along." He said as he pulled her close once again.

She leaned against his chest again knowing full well she might regret her next words. But she would never know unless she tried. "I want to apologize for…"

He rudely cut her off, a little bit of anger coloring his words. "Don't even say it. You don't have anything to be sorry about."

She gave him an annoyed look before slapping his arm. "A few kisses and you think you're off the hook?" She asked sweetly, trying to hold back a smile.

She felt his body tense at her words. If she knew him as well as she thought she did, the poor guy was probably thinking she hadn't forgiven him yet. She stole a quick glance at his face. He was staring straight ahead, his face seemingly devoid of emotion. She had to suppress her laughter as she murmured, "Oh honestly Duo, I'm not mad at you anymore. I've already forgiven you."

He looked down at her and couldn't decide whether he should frown or smile. Instead he opted to feign hurt as he stuck his nose in the air and let go of her long enough to cross his arms. "You're so mean to me! Cut me some slack here, I'm a guy! And in case you didn't know, guys are prone to being idiots! It's the one thing that'll never change about us!"

"No really? And here I thought it was just you…" She trailed off, smiling brightly as she leaned against him, tracing lazy circles on his chest. She just didn't have it in her to tell him that she managed to hear most of his confession from earlier. Maybe she'd tell him later but right now she was enjoying having him all to herself.

She couldn't wipe the smile off of her face if she tried to.Things were finally starting to look up for them. _They'll survive one day without me. Besides something tells me today is going to be a great day._

As much as he was pretending to be offended, she saw how hard he was trying not to smile or laugh. He was still staring at her but she caught the devilish twinkle in his eyes. She moved over, smiling coyly as she patted the spot on the bed next to her. Grinning impishly, he slid in next to her. She laid her head down on his chest as he kissed her temple. Snuggling closer to him, she sighed in bliss as she closed her eyes.

* * *

Today was one of those days where she should have stayed in bed. Never mind her scheduled meetings or guest appearances. Right now, she just wanted someone to save her from Dorothy's madness.

At approximately eight a.m., she was supposed to be en route to a meeting with the President. Imagine her surprise when the driver made several deliberate detours. She hadn't even had the time to ask what was going on before the chauffeur stopped at a red light.

She could only watch in horror and irritation as the driver removed his black cap only to reveal blonde hair. Before she could find her voice, Dorothy looked at her in the mirror and practically purred, "There has been a change in plans Miss Relena."

Her sense of logic went straight out of the window as she desperately pulled on the door handle. When that didn't work, she tried rolling down the windows but that wasn't working either. Dorothy's next words had done little to console her. "Relax. I'm not here to hurt you Miss Relena. I'm just merely borrowing you for the morning."

That little exchange was over twenty minutes ago. Now they were standing outside the entrance to Preventer's Headquarters. Relena wanted nothing more than to run back to her limousine and drive herself to her first meeting. Dorothy, however, had a firm grip on her arm and would have none of it.

"Dorothy, I still don't see what I have to do with any of this. It was your idea to come here, not mine's. I'm supposed to be attending a meeting with the President right now not trying to help you out with your love life!" She hissed frantically, her voice steadily rising in volume.

Dorothy smiled sweetly as she pushed open the doors with her free hand. "Why Miss Relena, you've done nothing but complain all morning. Where's your sense of adventure?"

Relena rolled her eyes as she kept pace with her. "My so-called sense of adventure died this morning when you kidnapped me."

She pointedly ignored Relena's last comment. "We're really killing two birds with one stone. You'll get to see your solider, plus you still owe him for standing you up last night." She replied, never once losing her feigned demure look.

"That might be true but any problems Heero and I are having should be settled between us and _not _in public! Now would you please let go of me?" Relena asked very politely.

Dorothy knew that tone of voice. It was the same voice Relena tended to use on stubborn politicians. That very same voice always tended to have a strict and brisk tone which left no room for foolishness.

She was smiling again but right now she knew Relena wanted to hurt her. "Not on your life! If I let you go, you'll run the first chance you get. So therefore, I will not release you. Not until you've gone to Heero's office and made up with him! Really, much Miss Relena, you shouldn't worry so much. I've already seen to it but all of your appointments and meetings have been effectively canceled for the morning. You should at least _try_ to enjoy your free time."

Relena didn't have to look at Dorothy to know that her smile was just downright smug. She could practically hear it in her voice. She also didn't miss the implications behind her friend's last sentence either. Apparently, the demon had thoroughly thought out her plan and taken extreme caution in executing the plan.

She took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. Though her morning might have gotten off to a horrendous start, that didn't mean she should further her problems by killing a friend.

_I'm sure I might be able to get away with a case of temporary insanity. _She mused sourly as she let Dorothy drag her into the building.

The two finally entered the building, walking in silence. One was contemplating the numerous ways she could get back at her so-called friend while the other was purposely ignoring her friend's icy glares.

As they walked past people, some couldn't help noticing the Vice Foreign Minister's unpleasant countenance. Which is exactly why most people were doing their very best to stay out of her path. Her boyfriend was already infamous because of his death glare but her chilly stare looked like it could beat his by a long shot.

Once the two women were safely out of earshot, some of the rookies exchanged confused looks before the gossiping began. "You don't think she's here to finish you know…" One rookie asked while he looked down the hall.

"Why else would she be here? She left so early yesterday but…" Another trainee trailed off, biting her lip.

One rookie got up from his desk abruptly. "Shouldn't we try to warn Preventer Yuy then?"

Silence descended upon the room as an image of their instructor being tortured and then killed by the Vice Foreign Minister flashed through their minds. Everyone in the room shuddered violently. It was no surprise when everyone began murmuring, "On second thought, I'll pass."

They cared about Yuy, but not enough to deal with his wrath _and_ his girlfriend's too.

Relena wanted to cry, scream and shout all at the same time. Why was she being punished? Wasn't it enough that she served the public and had to deal with stuffy politicians on a daily basis? What had she done to get stuck with such a demented person as Dorothy anyway?

First, she tried the friendly approach with Dorothy which quickly failed. Next, she tried pleading but that only managed to amuse Dorothy more so than she already was. Finally, she resorted to being a diplomat.

That particular course of action blew up in her face quite nicely when she threatened to tell Quatre on her because now she was currently locked in Heero's office. She hadn't realized what Dorothy was up to until it was too late. It was only when she heard the door click, did she rush into action. Not being able to take it anymore, she angrily banged on the door and promised to pay her back for this if it was the last thing she did.

Unfortunately, her tough girl act only made Dorothy laugh as she gleefully called out, "I will be expecting details Miss Relena."

She kicked the office door, glaring at it for all it was worth. "I don't know what's worse. The fact that I let Dorothy drag me here or the fact that she was able to lock me in here… She shouldn't even have a key to Heero's office!" She mumbled the last words then she sighed miserably.

_At least Heero didn't see me or hear me._

Having no other choice, she walked to Heero's desk and sat down. She folded her arms across his desk then she placed her head on her arms. Right before she closed her eyes, her last thought was focused on how Dorothy would pay for this.


	8. Trouble In Paradise

_**Author's Notes**_: Constructive criticisms are welcomed and italics will denote character thoughts. This story is still being beta read by PimpMastaPopo who rocks! Go read her stories okay? The rest of my author's note shall be at the end of the chapter. I promise there's a good reason for why I did that. By the way, I'll try not to make you guys wait seven more months for my next update. Now on with the show!

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own Gundam Wing or anything else associated with Gundam Wing.

Zechs had no problem dealing with disgruntled co-workers, former soldiers or terrorists. He did, however, have trouble dealing with women. At least that was the case for the women in his life.

He wanted to be closer to Relena, but he had no idea how to bridge the gap between them. Things were even more complicated, since she was finally dating Heero. Between her busy schedule and her boyfriend, he wasn't sure his sister would have time for him.

Noin was an entirely different problem altogether. He was practically a dead man walking. There was no way he was going to be able to weasel his way out of this situation.

At the very least, he was grateful that she decided to talk with him in private. The last thing he needed was for everyone to hear about his troubles at home. He was still a bit nervous, not to mention wary, of his wife's true intentions.

From the time they left the station, right up until they arrived home, Noin had been very quiet. She hadn't bothered to make any small talk with him. Perhaps what truly worried him was how terrible she looked.

During the drive home, her body language seemed to fluctuate between defeat and acceptance. She was a bit paler than normal and it looked like she had bags under her eyes. Maybe he was just imagining things, but it appeared as if his wife had been neglecting her health.

The car had stopped moments ago, but neither of the two knew what to say. For Zechs, he was still puzzled by Noin's behavior. Earlier when she came to see him, he could tell she was furious. Now there was an apathetic air about her. He began starting at her, wondering if she was going to make the first move or not.

His eyes once again took in her appearance. How could he have not noticed this before? She was always healthy. The only time he could ever recall her being ill was when she pushed herself too hard. Looking at her now, he was torn between being angry at her and feeling guilty.

He had a sneaking suspicion that he was the one to blame but at the same time, he knew that was hardly an excuse for her to neglect her health. He wasn't that important… was he?

His jumbled musings were interrupted by Noin's quiet voice. "Millardo?"

He grimaced as he waited her to speak. He was so used to her referring to him as Zechs that it always managed to take him by surprise when she called him by his real name. Although, at the moment, he was quite aware that she only addressed him by his birth name when she was mad at him or wanted to make a point.

_This won't be good. _

He turned to face her fully, looking directly into her eyes. Those beautiful blue eyes weren't as vibrant as they should be. This was wrong on so many levels. His wife was no quitter, nor was she a doormat.

He didn't know whether it was anger or adrenaline that prompted him to do so but within moments, his seatbelt was unbuckled and he was reaching out for her. He leaned over and kissed her passionately. His kisses were fervent, demanding and urgent. He was trying to convey a message to her.

She wrapped her arms around him to bring him closer as she returned his kisses with equal passion. She hadn't seen this coming, but far be it from her to complain. She was absolutely certain her lips would be bruised, but she could care less. Right now, she was in heaven. There was nothing that could ruin this moment.

His hands were currently fighting with her seatbelt. He wanted her and nothing was going to stop him. Completely satisfied when he heard a clicking noise, he pulled her even closer as he began kissing her throat and neck. Her hands were tangled in his hair as she moaned against his mouth.

The spell was broken when she murmured his name against his lips. Instead of paying her attention, he continued kissing her; the need to show her just how much he loved her still present. She pulled back from him, leaning her forehead against his. "As much as I'd love to continue with this, don't you think we'd be more comfortable inside the house?" She questioned.

He was many things, but no one would ever make the mistake of calling Zechs stupid. He wasted no time getting out of the car. Noin couldn't help the smile that came to her face as she watched him come around to her side of the car. He might have been in a hurry but he took his time helping her out of their vehicle. She was pleasantly surprised, however, when he picked up her as he quickened his pace to the front door of their home.

_I should get mad at him more often._

She snuggled into his arms comfortably as he fumbled with getting the door open. After a few failed attempts, he finally managed, crossing their threshold as he shut the door with his foot.

"We still need to talk." She murmured as she placed several light kisses against his throat.

"We will." He responded back as he kissed the top of her head.

As far as he was concerned, they could talk later. Right now, he needed and wanted to show his wife that he still loved her.

* * *

He was absolutely certain that the next person that crossed his path would get the tongue lashing of a lifetime. He was tired of people thinking that he was weak and harmless. He was quite capable of looking after himself. If he hadn't been capable then he wouldn't have fought in or survived two wars.

He had every right to be angry.

He didn't have to prove himself to anyone, but for some reason, it looked like that was the only way people would respect him. Just because he had a youthful appearance and looked like he didn't know the first thing about the business or political world didn't mean he wasn't cut out to run his father's company.

Despite what people thought or said about him, he was by no means an angel. His hands were just as stained as everyone else's. The only advantage he had going for him was the fact that he could hide his inner turmoil better than most people. It wasn't fair that he had to suffer in silence just because he was actually thoughtful and considerate. Maybe if he started acting selfish, people would finally realize that he had feelings too.

He was so busy brooding that he hadn't paid attention to where he was going. He was now standing in front of the training room still angry about his argument with Trowa. This time, he was sure he wasn't blowing things out of proportion. It just felt like no one was listening to him. It was like he was speaking but the words were going in one ear and coming out of the other.

_There's always a first time for everything._

Opening the door, he was greeted with the sight of Wufei meditating. Quietly shutting the door behind himself, he walked over to the rack of weapons and removed a staff. Placing the staff against the wall, he removed his jacket and tie then he rolled up the sleeves of his shirt. Picking up the staff once again, he proceeded to the rows of practice dummies located at the far end of the room.

Taking several deep breaths, he closed his eyes as he began a slow and easy routine of thrusts and dodges. Gradually picking up speed, he began to lose himself in the exercise. Already he was beginning to feel the anger and irritation seeping out ofhim. This is exactly what he needed: a distraction to help him keep his mind off of his troubles.

Wufei had heard him coming before he even entered. He figured it might have been Heero or even Trowa coming in for some early morning target practice but when he didn't hear any gunshots, he became curious. Normally Duo would have wasted no time in greeting him, so he was left with only one guess.

Opening his eyes, he was slightly shocked to see Quatre instead of one of the others. Out of the five of them, Quatre was the one that used the training room the least. Judging from his body language, he could tell that something was on his mind, but he didn't want to press him for any information.

Still, it was interesting to watch someone like Quatre tear into the practice dummies. He was moving gracefully as he went through the session. Sometimes he would hold the staff with both hands and other times, he would switch to using one hand. The targets were constantly spinning as a result of each of his rapid strikes. It was almost like watching a waltz except he didn't have a partner.

Since his concentration was already broken, he got up from the mat and walked over to the weapon's case. He retrieved a staff from the cabinet and walked over to an unoccupied area in the room. He placed the staff down on the floor then he proceeded to do a few stretches. Once he was done warming up, he picked up his staff and struck without warning.

He swung the staff at Quatre's side knowing full well Quatre would be able to block it. True to his assumption, Quatre brought his own staff down just in time to avoid being hit. As their eyes met, Wufei tried to strike him again, this time coming mere inches from striking Quatre.

Their eyes never left one another as they began to circle each other. It was Quatre who lunged first, aiming for Wufei's left arm. Wufei dodged him easily, bringing his staff up and around to hit Quatre in the back. On and on, the two went as Wufei kept Quatre on the defensive. Every now and then Quatre would be able to put Wufei on the defensive but their sparring match ended abruptly when Quatre's staff went sailing across the room.

Neither of them spoke for a moment until Wufei broke the silence. "You needed that."

Quatre couldn't help the small grin that came to his face as he went to retrieve his weapon. "I suppose I did. But you could have at least given me a warning."

Wufei smirked as he walked back over to the weapon's case. "Perhaps, but then you might have not have been willing to accept."

By now Quatre had joined him by the weapon's rack and was handing him the other staff. After locking the cabinet back, he turned around and walked back to the mat. Both of them took a seat on the mat as a companionable silence fell between them.

While the silence was indeed comfortable, Wufei was curious. He wanted to know what would bring Quatre to the training room, but he was too prideful to just come straight out and ask him. Luckily, he was saved from having to pry when Quatre began speaking again.

"I can't remember the last time I was actually in here. I think it was six months ago but I could be wrong."

"Eight months." He replied casually.

Quatre raised an eyebrow. "Keeping tabs on who comes in here?"

He frowned as he answered the question. "After that last stunt Maxwell pulled, what else did you expect?"

Quatre couldn't help chuckling. "Ah, now it makes sense. Lady Une wants to make sure Duo doesn't come near the weapons anymore unless he's authorized to use them for missions."

Wufei nodded, still frowning slightly. He remembered quite clearly how Duo had "accidentally" grabbed the rocket launcher instead of one of the standard hand guns when he had come in to do some target practice. He was unlucky enough to be passing by when the door to the room came clean off its hinges. He was able to avoid harm but he hadn't been too pleased when he saw Duo stumble out of the room with soot all over his clothes, holding up a badly damaged weapon, with the widest grin on his face.

To this day, he still claims he wasn't paying attention when it happened, but his friends knew better. That particular device had been declared off limits to everyone because the trigger and firing system were still unstable. If someone even so much as tapped the trigger, it would fire then automatically begin setting up for another shot. Needless to say, it had taken a lot of time and more money to repair both the training room and the rocket launcher thanks to a certain long haired friend of theirs.

"So why are you in here so early? Normally you're on your way out for a field assignment or you're starting the paperwork for your latest assignment."

"I was a bit distracted."

Quatre didn't miss the resentment in Wufei's voice. He knew he was going to have to tread lightly with Wufei, otherwise, he'd only end up making things worse.

"I was too but what happened? You're the last person to get distracted so easily. Something went wrong on your last assignment?"

This time, Wufei was the one to raise an eyebrow as he crossed his arms over his chest. He shot a quick look at Quatre, taking in his relaxed demeanor. He certainly didn't look like he was distracted. At least he didn't anymore.

He was surprised when he suddenly found himself speaking. "Sally has been on my mind lately. Far more than I'd like actually… And it's not helping matters that she has a friend visiting. Last night, during the written examination for the trainees', I saw her reading a book on makeovers. At one point, she was even taking notes!"

Quatre bit his lower lip to keep from smiling. After all, it wasn't every day that Wufei decided to confide in him. It wouldn't do him any good if he started laughing at him. He knew along with everyone else that Sally only had eyes for him, but it was almost like an unspoken rule amongst everyone else that the two of them should figure things out on their own. Taking a quick glance over at Wufei, he didn't miss how stiff his body seemed to be or the scowl on his face.

"Did you try asking her if she's interested in her friend? Maybe he's just a really good friend?"

He could feel the tension slipping away for a moment. "No I haven't asked her. I didn't…" He trailed off uncertainly.

"You didn't what?" Quatre asked, caution still evident in his tone.

Wufei turned his head away as he muttered, "I didn't want her to get the wrong idea about... About us…"

The simple revelation in those words dawned heavily on Quatre as he stared at Wufei.

_He's afraid of hurting her._ He thought to himself, completely understanding Wufei's situation.

He placed a comforting hand on Wufei's shoulder as he spoke, "I think you're not giving her nearly enough credit. She knows you better than that."

He turned back to face Quatre expecting to see pity and sympathy in his eyes. He was very relieved to see encouragement instead. "She hasn't stayed with you this long just because it's her job."

Just like that the tension was gone. "Now I see what Barton meant about you."

Quatre removed his hand from his shoulder as a confused look crossed his face.

Wufei smirked again as he stood up. "He said that you tend to have a calming influence on people. He was right."

Quatre could only stare in disbelief at Wufei. It wasn't until he realized that Wufei was already gone that he knew what he needed to do.

It was time he started following his own advice instead of everyone else's.

* * *

He had witnessed many strange things in his lifetime but nothing could have ever prepared him to find his girlfriend waiting for him in his office. As their eyes met, he quickly noted that she seemed angry.

_She couldn't still be mad at me for canceling our date could she_?

He was frowning heavily, lost in thought until Relena spoke. "Heero, do you know the best method to exact revenge upon someone?"

His frown quickly deepened if that were possible. He began walking to his desk as he asked, "Where is this coming from?"

Relena narrowed her eyes as she began to frown. "Dorothy."

Her tone of voice had just enough edge in it to almost make him flinch. She was definitely angry, but at least it wasn't his fault. Before he could even ask her to elaborate, she was out of his chair and pacing.

"She decided to cancel all of my appointments. Behind my back mind you. Then she went as far as to insinuate that I should clear up any problems with you. Honestly, I wonder why I even bother putting up with her. Clearly she is insane, and needs help. Perhaps I should have paid her more attention during the Eve Wars. Maybe I could have helped curb her devious tendencies."

Heero could only watch in mild amusement as she walked back and forth as she gestured wildly with her hands. She stopped momentarily to take a deep breath. As she was getting ready to speak again, she suddenly found herself being enveloped in strong arms. She let her head rest against his chest as he murmured in her ear, "You can't save everyone."

"I don't want to save her. I want to kill her." She mumbled.

He chuckled briefly before kissing her on the top of her head. "And you claim to be a pacifist."

She pushed away from him, glaring at him in mock annoyance. "Any violent urges I might suffer from can be traced back to you."

He grinned at her for a bit before he picked her up and walked over to his desk. He sat down in his chair as he placed her on his lap. She returned his grin with a small smile.

"I thought you were supposed to be a sweet and mild mannered woman."

She smacked his arm playfully. "Comments like those will only cause trouble for you Mr. Yuy."

He shrugged nonchalantly as he wrapped his arms around her again. She turned in his arms just enough to kiss him on the cheek. "I suppose I should let you get back to work."

Even as she said the words, he knew she didn't really mean them. He was well aware of the fact that she actually wanted to stay with him today. He couldn't exactly take the day off, but perhaps he could take a long lunch break. Maybe then he would finally be able to enjoy some quality time with her.

"You're not interrupting anything important."

She couldn't resist smiling again. She was quite aware of the subtextin his words. She nodded as she once again leaned back into his warm embrace.

It was tender moments like this that helped to remind her just why she loved him so much. She knew he wasn't exactly the most romantic or emotional man on the planet but his actions tended to speak louder than his words. Loving him was definitely a full time job but she wouldn't have it any other way.

_**Author's Note's Part II**_: At this time, I'd like to address a few concerns that I keep seeing in the reviews. The first concern is how I'm portraying Relena. Recently, there was a review that said she was a little OOC in the last chapter. I stand by the belief that Relena is more than just an annoying and helpless diplomat that constantly has to be rescued and protected by Heero twenty four seven. In this story, I'm trying to present her in a more believable and likable manner. Her interaction with Dorothy in the last chapter was supposed to highlight the differences between her and Dorothy. Relena strikes me as the type to be quite effective at fooling people (as in she wears a mask). Around her fellow politicians and diplomats, she's not going to be her true self. I don't expect her to really cut loose around them. They would never take her seriously if she actually acted her age around them. But if she's around say Duo, Hilde or even Dorothy, then I tend to believe she would have no problem loosening up. As I said before, I don't mind constructive criticisms at all. However, I'm not going to write Relena as a whimpering damsel in distress when clearly she's so much more than that. My beta and I have been taking every precaution to make sure no one is out of character. I might not have stated this but I'm trying to portray all of the relationships as well as the characters themselves in a realistic manner. Most GW non-yaoi romance stories end up with a happily ever after and quick solutions for their problems. It's my experience that the romances are often portrayed without any struggles and instead focuses on just how quickly each couple can get into bed. Of course I don't want anyone to think I'm attacking them or singling them out. I just wanted to clear up a few things about this story that's all.


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